USC
California
Trojans Take Third At NorCal Tournament
September 20, 2009 | Men's Water Polo
Sept. 20, 2009
PALO ALTO, CALIF. - The No. 1 USC men's water polo team took third place at the NorCal Tournament today after following up its first loss since 2007 with a win to close out the tourney in third. The Trojans had won the NorCal tournament crown in the previous four seasons, but missed a shot at a fifth straight title when UCLA upended USC 5-4 in this morning's semifinal. The Trojans rebounded in the third-place game with an 8-6 win over California to finish the weekend on a winning note. The loss to UCLA snapped a 36-game winning streak for USC, although the Trojans still hold a powerful record on the year so far with an 8-1 overall mark after this weekend's play.
USC brought a 7-0 record into today's NorCal Tournament competition, which offered up the Trojans' first look of the year at crosstown rival UCLA. USC took a 2-1 lead in the first period and held its slim advantage with a 3-2 edge going into halftime. In the second half of play, however, USC could manage just a single third-period goal, while UCLA got two through in the third and scored the winner in the fourth to push past USC for a 5-4 victory that sent the Bruins into the title match while the Trojans would play for third. Against UCLA, J.W. Krumpholz accounted for half of USC's scoring with a pair of goals, while goalie Joel Dennerley recorded six blocks in the game.
Up against another solid rival in the third-place game, USC came out stronger on the offensive end. The Trojans got eight different scorers in on the action to move ahead of the Bears. By halftime, USC was up 6-4 on Cal, and worked ahead 8-5 going into the fourth period. Again, USC was unable to get to the back of the net in the final frame, but the Trojans' balanced scoring attack in the previous periods along with some stubborn defense helped USC stay out front of the Bears. Dennerley gathered in seven saves in the cage as USC held off Cal and registered an 8-6 win to take third place at the NorCal Tournament. Host Stanford would go on to beat UCLA in the final to win the 2009 crown.
USC's next action comes on Saturday (Sept. 26) with the Trojans' home opener in an MPSF game against Pepperdine at 3:15 p.m. at McDonald's Swim Stadium. The Trojans will do double duty on the day with a 4:45 p.m. game against Long Beach City College.
2009 NorCal Tournament - Hosted by Stanford
SEMIFINAL - Sept. 20
#4 UCLA 5, #1 USC 4
USC 2 - 1 - 1 - 0 = 4
UCLA 1 - 1 - 2 - 1 = 5
SCORING:
USC - J.W. Krumpholz 2, Shea Buckner, Kyle Sterling.
UCLA - Hennessy 2, Consani, Davidson, Hohl.
SAVES: Joel Dennerley (USC) 6, Lapin (UCLA) 11.
THIRD PLACE - Sept. 20
#1 USC 8, #3 California 6
USC 3 - 3 - 2 - 0 = 8
CAL 3 - 1 - 1 - 1 = 6
SCORING:
USC - Anthony Artukovich, Shea Buckner, Matthew Burton, J.W. Krumpholz, Peter Kurzeka, Matt Sagehorn, Kyle Sterling, Jordan Thompson.
CAL - Rackov 2, Bickham, Dudley, Warden, White.
SAVES:
Joel Dennerley (USC) 7, McIntosh (CAL) 7.
Players Mentioned
